2026 Inquiry MattersConference

Taylor Wuerfel
Room 204

K–2 Teachers

This session explores how collaborative learning can be woven throughout the K–2 day. Teachers will see examples such as purposeful turn-and-talks, buddy reading, expert research groups, cross-grade reading partnerships, and meaningful morning meetings, leaving with practical strategies to foster student talk, shared thinking, and problem-solving across content areas.

Jessie Steedly
Room 203

K–2 Teachers

This session examines how classroom routines and rituals build trust, accountability, and character in K–2 classrooms. Participants explore strategies that strengthen students' sense of self while developing empathy, respect, and care for others. Participants leave with practical ideas to strengthen classroom culture and support the whole child.

Michelle Kimpson
Room 201

K–2 Teachers

This session invites participants to step inside a classroom and experience a day shaped by a culture of literacy. Through authentic examples of reading, writing, math, and inquiry, attendees will explore how literacy lives throughout the day, supports student engagement, and deepens learning across content areas.

Stephanie Rudmann
Room 103

3–5 Teachers

Are you interested in learning how to center narrative and informational writing within inquiry-based units? Come learn how to invite students to model writing after mentor authors and engage as researchers who ask and answer questions to write knowledgeably about curricular topics. This session will also highlight the role of teacher reflexivity—reflecting during and after instruction to refine practice and reimagine learning experiences for students.

Nozsa Kyler, Tianna Myers, and Students
Room 105

2–5 Teachers

Through the use of journals and articles, morning meetings become a place where kids can ask questions about their world and think together. Come prepared to engage in a morning meeting with fellow second and fifth-graders.

Brooke Fonder
Room 101

K–5 Teachers, Coaches, and Leaders

Follow alongside one school's journey with Learning Labs and see firsthand how language-centered Learning Labs changed a school's culture and increased professional dialogue. Coaches and educators will reimagine Learning Labs as opportunities to enhance student learning, bolster teacher professional development, and increase student achievement.

Sequoia Hampton, Lyn Mueller, USC Interns, and Students
Room 301

K–5 Teachers

Join second graders and USC interns as they showcase how they learned about engagement and each other through a weekly partnership focusing on social studies standards that address currency, budgeting, and community building. A variety of strategies demonstrate how cooperative explorations built knowledge, explored culture, and created relationships.

Crystal Boyd, Megan Drayton, and Shiniqua Mays
Room 102

3–8 Teachers, Coaches, and Leaders

Through reflection prompts, shared experiences, and guided inquiry, participants will engage with the question: How does curiosity change the way we lead, learn, and respond to challenges? This session highlights practical ways to embed inquiry into daily practice, including using questions rather than quick answers, viewing challenges as data, and leveraging reflection to drive continuous improvement.

Koehler Beard and Hannah Frederick
Room 303

K–5 Teachers

This session introduces inclusive practices that nurture diverse neurotypes and how classroom choices build belonging. Presenters center empathy, connection over compliance, and clear, positive feedback, equipping educators with practical strategies to recognize strengths, support neurodivergent learners, and create inclusive classrooms that ensure equitable access so every learner thrives.

Angela Adams, Mikayla Carter, Johanna Guilford, Sarah Harllee, Kristina Hill, and Julia Walker
Room 304

4K–12 Teachers

This presentation focuses on stories from educators who student-taught just a few years ago. The session includes an overview of the Carolina Teacher Induction Program and its proven support of novice educators.

Colavito McKie, Jr. and Students
Room 104

3–5 Teachers

In this session, teachers gain insight into how to help students refine their scope of inquiry in core subject areas, using practices that encourage questioning, collaborative learning, and deep understanding. Participants will learn firsthand what inquiry practices look like at the upper elementary level, incorporating engagement strategies that support reading, writing, and joy from learning history.

Margaret Nickerson and Brooke Bridges
Room 202

K–5 Teachers and Instructional Coaches

Building Thinking Classrooms by Peter Liljedahl is a collection of 14 practices rooted in moving away from mimicking and toward thinking. This interactive session immerses participants in the experience of being a thinker.

Tiffany Palmatier and Students
Room 202

K–2 Teachers

Tiffany shares her inquiry into spelling instruction. Participants will experience stories of trial and error, learn about the actions taken after unsettling conversations with parents accustomed to spelling tests grounded in rote memorization, and witness Tiffany conferring with growing writers to promote spelling awareness.

Jessie Steedly
Room 203

K–2 Teachers

Discover how to bring math workshop to life in early childhood classrooms. This session shares a practical framework for math workshop, strategies for building strong number sense, and ways to structure spiral review through hands-on stations and games. Participants will explore engaging K–2 math games that promote thinking, independence, and joyful learning.

Jordan Page
Room 201

K–2 Teachers

Play is the vehicle for learning, not a distraction from it. This session identifies common misconceptions that prevent play from being safeguarded in early childhood classrooms. Participants will explore why purposeful play matters and leave with a toolbox of small, manageable shifts to embed play into the day in ways that elevate engagement and launch meaningful instructional units.

Rossi Hall and Alyssa Powers
Room 303

2–8 Teachers

This session explores effective ways to scaffold writers through intentional modeling and the use of strategic graphic organizers aligned to ELA standards and student needs. Participants will learn how to assess student needs using writing samples and kid-watching observations, and how to integrate MagicSchool AI as a supportive tool throughout the writing process.

Brooke Fonder, Kaitlyn Foy, Emilie McFall, Gina Morris, Sarah Sellers, and Students
Room 101

3–5 Teachers

Participants follow alongside a team of teachers at Satchel Ford Elementary as they conduct a nonfiction inquiry project on the 5 classes of animals to coincide with grade-level science standards. Watch as teachers and students discuss their investigation into mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish, and the art of reading, researching, and writing nonfiction.

Beth White
Room 105

K–8 Teachers, Coaches, and Leaders

What teachers believe about children as readers and writers shapes what they notice and how they respond. This session explores how kidwatching, paired with reflection on teacher beliefs, informs instructional decisions. Participants learn how observing literacy behaviors guides intentional planning for whole-class, small-group, and individual instruction.

Teresa Randolph, Jennifer Layton, and Students
Room 103

3–5 Teachers, Coaches, and Leaders

Empower students as world-changers through the Team Landolph model, which uses inquiry-based learning to build awareness, compassion, and problem-solving for positive community impact. Presenters share the framework and key moves that guide students from problem identification to project implementation while developing systems thinking, 21st-century skills, and strong school-community connections.

Elizabeth Scarbrough
Room 204

K–8 Teachers

This session explores how no-cost micro-credentials and flexible online learning modules can personalize professional learning through teacher reflection and classroom inquiry to support writing instruction. Offered through the South Carolina Writing Improvement Network, participants will leave with optional access to a no-cost micro-credential they can complete at their own pace.

George J. Roy and Matthew Cunningham
Room 102

6–8 Teachers

During this session, presenters explore tasks to discuss how they empowered middle school students to use their geometric reasoning to investigate real-world problems involving baseball stadiums.

Megan Drayton
Room 302

K–8 Coaches and Leaders

Participants will engage in inquiry around key questions: What do we believe about student potential? How do our beliefs show up in our leadership actions? Which practices most effectively build trust, strengthen instruction, and sustain improvement? The session supports leaders in identifying aligned beliefs and practices, analyzing their impact, and determining next steps to lead change with coherence, consistency, and purpose.

Kendra Lynn and Richland One Literacy Coaches
Room 301

K–8 Coaches and Leaders

Effective instructional coaching is a cornerstone of fostering teacher growth and enhancing student learning outcomes. Participants will explore practical strategies for creating and sustaining robust support systems that empower both instructional coaches and educators, including how to build a collaborative coaching culture and tailor support to meet the unique needs of teachers.

Lucy Spence
Room 304

K–12 Teachers, Coaches, and Leaders

Current neuroscience findings have shown that literacy involves multiple dimensions. This presentation will provide current neuroscience findings linked with lesson ideas that include visual, phonological, embodied, and cultural dimensions.

Valente' Gibson, Jacqui Witherspoon, and Eliza Braden
Room 104

K–5 Teachers, Coaches, and Leaders

This session equips educators with practical strategies for incorporating student interests into writing instruction. By examining curriculum units centered around universal themes such as food and music, attendees explore effective approaches to making writing instruction more meaningful and inclusive. Participants leave with a template plan and actionable strategies.

Catherine Barnhill
Room 105

K–2 Teachers

This session offers participants manageable shifts and simple additions to inspire curiosity, voice, and engagement without rewriting curriculum or reinventing your practice. Learn to look at your planning and daily life through an inquiry lens while challenging yourself to question your decisions and stay curious.

Taylor Wuerfel
Room 204

K–2 Teachers

Discover how to bring math workshop to life in early childhood classrooms. This session shares a practical framework for math workshop, strategies for building strong number sense, and ways to structure spiral review through hands-on stations and games. Participants will explore engaging K–2 math games that promote thinking, independence, and joyful learning.

Michelle Kimpson
Room 201

K–2 Teachers

This session highlights inquiry-based strategies for strengthening content literacy across K–2 classrooms. Drawing on a cross-disciplinary project that integrates reading, writing, questioning, and critical thinking, participants will explore practical ways to build a culture of literacy that promotes student engagement, deeper content understanding, and learning across disciplines.

JP Shorter
Room 101

K–5 Teachers and Coaches

Compliance is not engagement. Students must think, respond, and stay actively involved. Inspired by Dr. Anita Archer's insight that we must "gain attention and maintain attention," this session equips teachers with simple, high-impact strategies to increase participation, motivation, and student ownership of learning across all subjects.

Nozsa Kyler and Students
Room 302

2–5 Teachers

Every individual possesses unique passions that foster self-assurance and authenticity. This session offers practical strategies to cultivate student engagement in writing while systematically honoring the diverse cultural backgrounds students bring to the academic environment.

Tracy Etu and Students
Room 104

3–5 Teachers

This session explores inquiry-based learning through integration across subjects. Students select and research a continent, country, and animal from that region, using diverse print and digital resources to create an informational project including a zoo-style plaque. The project is launched by a class study of gorillas and integrated with the book The One and Only Ivan.

Chris Hass and Katie Kelly
Room 202

K–5 Teachers

This session explores strategies for empowering students to transform empathy into meaningful action through reading, writing, and research. Participants will explore approaches for guiding learners to investigate real-world issues, examine multiple perspectives, and develop as change agents who connect classroom learning to positive change in their communities.

Sumner Livingston, Michele Miller, and Students
Room 303

3–5 Teachers

Educators will get an inside glimpse into two inquiry units conducted by 5th-grade students at Satchel Ford Elementary: a study into journalism and student-generated magazines, and a study of our national parks system. Participants will see these projects from idea generation to final publication and hear from both students and teachers.

April Beale
Room 304

6–8 Teachers

This session explores how to transition from traditional science instruction to student-driven inquiry using anchoring phenomena. Drawing from OpenSciEd strategies, the presenter demonstrates how to use a Driving Question Board to center student curiosity in any middle-level science unit. Participants will learn practical techniques to shift from learning about a topic to figuring out how the world works through investigation.

Emily Whitecotton, Arthur Newton, Nathan O'Neill, and Julius Scott
Room 16

K–8 Teachers and Leaders

Join CFI's Principal and thinking partners from Richland School District Two and Lexington-Richland School District Five for a structured connection session to explore collective efficacy and effective innovative practices. Participants will prioritize ideas from today's conference, share them, and consider new collaborations that might result.

Zaida Prater, Lyn Mueller, Elias Gastelum, Deirdre Nally, and Marco Hernandez
Room 301

K–8 Teachers and Leaders

International teachers bring unique cultural perspectives to our schools, but their challenges often go unrecognized. Join international teachers and instructional coaches as they share insights from their collaborative experiences and provide recommendations for teachers and administrators to foster successful relationships and support cultural exchange in the classroom.

Janet Campbell, Margaret "Casey" Davis, and Quantina Haggwood
Room 102

K–8 Coaches and Leaders

Leaders who intentionally center joy in their practice are seeing measurable academic gains, stronger staff engagement, and more resilient school cultures. Through stories from the field and evidence of impact, the presenters will explore how joyful leadership becomes a strategic lever for powerful outcomes. Participants leave with practical leadership moves that build thriving school communities.